The present invention relates to a soft box that is a type of photographic lighting device and, more particularly, to a soft box having a folding structure similar to that of an umbrella rod, in which the folding structure of the soft box is improved such that even a large soft box can be easily folded or unfolded.
As is well known, the strobe is used to realistically express the texture of a subject in a rich light quantity and to reproduce accurate colors when photographing portraits or advertisement photographs indoors. Although the strobe light is directly irradiated to the subject. However, in order to obtain soft lighting, a soft box is combined with the front of the strobe to use reflected light.
There are various types of soft boxes, but usually a soft box includes a speed ring (adapter ring) formed in the center to be coupled to the strobe and a reflecting fabric provided in the shape of an umbrella or a funnel in the vicinity thereof so as to diffuse and reflect light.
In order to maintain the reflecting fabric in the unfolded shape of an umbrella or a funnel, rods made of metal or synthetic resin are coupled, wherein one side end of each of the rods is mounted on a side surface of an adapter ring and the other side end is fixed to the end of the reflecting fabric. In order to maintain a stretched and unfolded state of the reflecting fabric, the rods are coupled to have elasticity while being slightly inclined in the outward direction.
The soft box rods are conventionally configured to be inserted into or withdrawn from a speed ring respectively, but in recent years, a folding structure is used to fold or unfold the rods in the insertion state.
When using these folding soft boxes, there is no particular problem with small-sized soft boxes. However, in the case of a large soft box, especially when it is unfolded, it is considerably difficult to perform a release operation for folding the same and maintain the unfolded state stably.
In order to overcome the need for greater strength in the folding process of such a large soft box and to maintain the unfolded state effectively, the configuration as disclosed in the following document has been proposed.
However, this prior art still has a problem in that a small-sized soft box is easily unfolded or folded but a large-sized soft box also requires too much force for the release operation. In order to solve the problem, a complicated releasing configuration has been provided, leading to various disadvantages such that the price has risen, the weight has become heavy, and repair has become difficult, etc.